Utah’s Biodiversity Experiences for Students and Teachers

The Brigham Young University and Southern Utah Mathematics and Science Partnership is offering a professional development program for all Utah Biology and 7th grade Integrated Science teachers, known as UBEST. Using the Utah Science Core Curriculum, teachers will learn how to effectively bring nature into the classroom, get hands-on experiences with what they have read in textbooks, and develop real scientific research investigations for their students to move inquiry beyond simulated laboratory activities. The participating teachers and their students will interact with research laboratories at BYU right from their own campus, collect real time authentic data, and present their findings to a larger scientific community.

Effective teaching strategies modeled by award winning science educators, Nikki Hanegan and Riley Nelson, help teachers bring inquiry and curiosity into their biology and life sciences curriculum. All activities are designed to meet the needs of all students in Utah, whether they are urban, rural, low socio-economic, underserved, suburban or advanced. Come, learn, and have fun engaging in real scientific research done in your classroom with your students. This ten-day experience has changed teachers' lives forever.